How To Care For Leather Jackets

A leather jacket can represent a considerable investment and as such utilizing sound tips for leather jacket care can ensure that it will reatain it's good looks for a lifetime. Even normal maintenance can be costly when it comes to leather garments, but in most instances leather can be cared for and minor flaws corrected at home with the implementation of a few common sense do-it-yourself tips.

The first aspect of leather jacket care begins with a good, basic cleaning given at least two or three times annuallly. This requires nothing more than a bowl of warm water, a half teaspoon of gentle dish soap (baby shampoo works great) and two soft, clean rags. Simply mix the soap and water and dampen one rag and pat a designated portion of the leather jacket for a few moments, and then take the dry rag and pat the same area until dry to the touch. Never rub - on soft leather you can actually push dirt deeper and you may never get it out.

At this point some may ask "What should I do with an old wrinkled leather jacket that has a few moldy spots on it?" The easy answer is to discard it and it may very well be necessary, but before doing so there are some measures available that may just bring it back to life.

In this case take the leather jacket and the same soapy water, add a 6 or 7 drops of white vinegar and obtain a very soft bristled toothbrush. If a moldy spot is the size of a quarter dip the toothbrush in the cleaning solution and very gently go over the mold in a small circular motion and then pat dry. You may have to repeat this process several times, but in the end the results can be quite pleasing.

When it comes to removing wrinkles leather jacket care is usually pretty easy. For light wrinkles hang the jacket somewhere that air can circulate around it like on a hanger in a wide door frame. In 24 to 36 hours small wrinkles should lessen considerably if not be totally gone. For severe wrinkles on a leather jacket try stretching the jacket by hand being careful not to tear it, and then simultaneously blow the area with a hair dryer on medium heat setting for 30 seconds in duration at one time. It may be necessary to repeat this process 30 to 50 times over the course of several days for extreme wrinkles, but usually the leather jacket will loosen up eventually.

Folowing one or all of the aforementioned actions it's an easy task to finish off your leather jacket care by applying one of the many commericially available leather protectant products.